Queue for Baden-Clay trial. Courtesy Gerry Nicholls.
0:39

A crowd time lapse outside Queensland's Supreme Court of people waiting to enter for another day of Gerard Baden-Clay's trial.

Courier Mail

02 Jul 2014

IT is day 15 of the trial of former Brookfield real estate agent Gerard Baden-Clay, 43, who stands accused of murdering his wife Allison Baden-Clay, 43, on April 19, 2012.

Baden-Clay has pleaded not guilty in the Supreme Court in Brisbane.

The day began and ended with a closing address from barrister Michael Byrne QC, for the accused. He will continue summing up to the jury tomorrow.

Mr Byrne took the jury to evidence about marks on Gerard Baden-Clay's face, asking them to consider the evidence of Dr Margaret Stark who said the only people who know how the injuries were caused was the people present.

He took the jury to the scenarios the pathologist Dr Nathan Milne raised as to possible causes of death.

They included that Ms Baden-Clay drowned; fell from a height or into water and drowned; died of alcohol or sertraline toxicity; or that she suffered the effects of "serotonin syndrome" which led to drowning or falling from a height to her death.

Baden-Clay says murder claims are 'absurd'
1:54

Gerard Baden-Clay has emphatically denied suffocating his wife during an intense cross-examination.

Sky News

02 Jul 2014

News

Mr Byrne asked the jury whether there was evidence of Ms Baden-Clay's "worsening mental health" leading up to her disappearance.

"Gerard doesn't know what happened to Allison that night, the next morning, but it's important for you to understand the assessments by various mental professionals as to what her mental health had been," he said.

He took the jury to the evidence of Ms Baden-Clay's general practitioner in 2011 when she complained of experiencing guilt, low mood and feeling teary.

He said that during her most recent visit with Dr Nicholas Bourke, Ms Baden-Clay was experiencing "bad premenstrual mood swings" and her Zoloft dosage was increased from 50mg to 100mg on March 19, 2012.

He took the jury to the evidence of defence witness and forensic psychiatrist Dr Michael Schramm, who said it was possible Ms Baden-Clay was experiencing a relapse of her depressive symptoms at the time.

Mr Byrne took the jury to the evidence of defence witness and toxicologist Dr Michael Robertson, who said sertraline had some side-effects while sertraline syndrome could occur in a regular user and have an effect on the brain chemistry to increase both the positive and adverse effects.

Mr Byrne said Dr Schramm told the jury there was a link between major depression and suicide.

Mr Byrne said the accused had told them he did not know what happened to his wife.

He said she sat up with her husband until he went to bed as she watched The Footy Show.

"Is it possible that Allison stayed up watching television thinking about what had gone on between her and Gerard, what had been revealed, what you will see in the slide in front of you was the rawness could be opened up by that session," he said.